Harry Potter: Wizard, Student, and Gamer?
by Greensword101
Summary: Within 24 hours, Harry learns he's a wizard, will be attending Hogwarts and discovers that his life has now been turned into a video game not unlike one of Dudley's. Now his hard life has gotten harder.


Author's Note: We are confirming once and for all ladies and gentlemen that I cannot control my brain when it comes to stories and how many to do at a time. I need stimulation because I am addicted to writing and this was something I decided "fuck it" and wanted to start working on.

I personally thank Plot Bunnies: Be Free! (my fic, by the way) for this as well as Naruto: The Game of Life for being the inspiration. I will be having a lot of fun with this story, I just know it.

Before jumping in, I want to discuss how I am going to go about this story:

Because this is a The Gamer fic, I will be applying video game logic to certain aspects, such as spells. That means you can expect Harry or other characters to be casting Flipendo. I will also be using spells that are listed in the Harry Potter wiki, even those that were never used in the books or movies.

I want to keep the Gamer aspect crucial, but not in your face all the time. That means that the Gamer isn't going to keep popping up all the time. This may change over the course of the story, but I am going to keep it to a minimum for now.

This is not a harem story. Get that out of your head this instant. Not comfortable having an eleven year old romancing a bunch of girls when he hasn't even gone through puberty yet himself.

This is also not a bashing story. As flawed as Dumbledore and Ron can be, I am not going to have the former cackling "For the Greater Good" because I am sick of that popping up in stories and want to groan because that was something he said in his childhood. And Ron is going to be a main character whether you like it or not. Going to assume you don't like it.

Big shout out to SeerKing for helping me with a few things and giving

**0-0**

Harry Potter was eleven years old and today was his birthday. And he was spending it shopping for school. Except, it wasn't really a chore like whenever he and his large cousin, Dudley, when with Aunt Petunia for clothes shopping – for Dudley, Harry was forced to accompany them because he wasn't trusted alone in the house and because Aunt Petunia would always try to find the cheapest options even if they didn't fit Harry – and Harry didn't have to spend hours on end in the same shop waiting for Aunt Petunia to finally pick out what she thought was the perfect clothes for her "Dudders" while Harry would have been lucky to get something that wasn't a direct hand-me down that was once worn by his bulbous cousin.

Instead, he was brought to a place called Diagon Alley by a large man – very large – named Hagrid. After being told he was a wizard. And that his parents weren't drunks. And that he was meant to go to a place called Hogwarts and spend the next seven years training to become a full-fledged wizard like his mother and father. The thought of learning how to do magic filled Harry from head to toe with delight.

In under 24 hours, Harry was told he was special. That he was important and famous. And the people he had met in Diagon Alley had done nothing but greet him warmly like an old friend. He was still having a hard time processing that; anyone who had ever been nice to him at primary school was intimidated away by Dudley and his gang. And no one ever wanted to disagree with them.

Here, he wasn't Harry Potter, the scrawny boy who had no friends in Surrey. He was Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived.

He couldn't help but look over the many shops and people that littered the crowded space; stalls holding dancing rabbit's feet, an old man was puffing out smoke that shaped itself into a sailboat, purses that followed their owners like little dogs without legs. Hagrid promised that they would be able to look around some more after they withdrew Harry's money from the bank, Gringotts.

It was a large, marble-white building that contrasted with the many colors of the crowded Diagon Alley. An onlooker could easily mistake it for a cathedral, though Harry had never been inside of one as the Dursleys weren't religious. A small part of him was relieved and thankful that it wasn't the case, otherwise, Harry might have been never allowed to leave the house. The image of being strapped down to a bed while ominous chanting filled the air made shivers run down his back. Harry dismissed that thought as best he could and followed close behind Hagrid into the bank. As they walked in, more questions came to Harry, who couldn't keep wishing that he had eight heads to look around all at once. Small men with pointed ears and noses of different sizes and shapes occupied the desks. Harry quietly asked Hagrid what they were.

Hagrid's voice was deathly quiet, "Goblins, Harry. They aren' ta friendliest o' creatures, but they're ruddy cleaver. Best teh stay close." Harry had enough experience with unfriendly people to obey Hagrid's instructions to the letter. He still looked once or twice at the goblins to see what they were doing, doing his best to not let his gaze linger too long.

Goblins taking in sapphires in exchange for rubies, scales measuring out bars of gold and silver coins, mounds of bronze Knuts being counted for each large gold coin. Goblins testing different coins shaped in squares, triangles, and stars. One goblin had tossed away what looked like a large gold coin with a very pale green shade to the surprise of one man speaking to the goblin. The conversation that followed had the man hollowing that he'd been tricked into accepted leprechaun coins as payment echoed throughout the large room as Hagrid and Harry reached the end, where a goblin with gold spectacles and crooked nose loomed over them like a judge looming over a convict.

"Mister Harry Potter wishes teh make a withdrawal," Hagrid said importantly.

The goblin turned his gaze more in Harry's direction, "And does he have his key?"

Several minutes of Hagrid checking his many pockets – and the discarding of what appeared to be moldy dog biscuits later – a gold key no larger than Harry's thumb was produced. Along with an envelope.

"The You-Know-What in vault You-Know-Which," Hagrid whispered urgently. The goblin looked at the contents for a moment before nodding briskly.

"Golfimbul," the goblin called out over his shoulder. To Hagrid and Harry, he said, "He will bring you to the vaults in question."

"Yes, Griphook," a goblin with a very fat face and wide nose stood at the ready. Harry was reminded a great deal of Aunt Marge – even though she wasn't really his aunt, he was forced to call her that – and was tempted to ask if Griphook would bring them instead.

* * *

Despite the neck-breaking cart ride Harry and Hagrid took to the vault, it did nothing to quash Harry's urge to look and see. There was a hunger inside of him that the Dursleys had refused to satisfy, a hunger that Harry had begun to dread over the years. The one rule that was hammered into his head growing up in Privet Drive over and over again was to never ask questions. Defiance, or perhaps a stubborn refusal to learn when to keep his mouth closed, had Harry breaking that rule time and time again despite the fury he would most certainly be invoking from his relatives. Hagrid was more than eager to satisfy his questions and curiosity as best as he could, but also added that Hogwarts would teach him more than the giant gamekeeper ever could.

The moment they left the bank, Harry had a decent sized bag filled with different coins – Knuts, Sickles, and Galleons – to help purchase supplies. He weighed the bag carefully in both hands, unused to having any money for himself. He knew that if the Dursley ever found out about his family vault, they would do everything in their power to empty it out for themselves. Meanwhile, Hagrid's face was a pale shade of green, thanks in no part to the heart-pumping cart ride through the bank just to get to Harry's vault. Though, Harry still wanted to know about the other stop to Vault 317, even when Hagrid kept insisting it was a Hogwarts secret.

"Look, Harry," Hagrid leaned against a nearby wall when they left Gringotts and took large gulps of breath, "I'm gonna go back teh the Leaky Cauldron fer a bit. Those carts don' agree with me. Why do yeh head over teh Ollivander's first an' I'll meet yeh there when I'm feelin' better."

Hagrid pointed to a dingy looking building a short distance away with the sign Ollivanders hanging above the door. It reminded him of those places Aunt Petunia specifically instructed him and his cousin to never go by themselves. Harry remembered asking why and she looked at him with distain before saying that strange people would offer them candy and want to touch them in places they didn't want to be touched before angrily reminding Harry not to ask questions. Harry still wasn't sure if she was legitimately worried for his safety or mad that he broke the 'No Questions' rule.

Harry slowly made his way to the shop, noticing only a single wand on a purple pillow being shown through the dusty window. He peered at the sign more closely, reading Ollivanders: Maker of Fine Wands Since 382 B.C.

The door creaked and moaned opened as he entered. Inside, the shop felt less like it sold wands and more like a strict library. Shelves upon shelves stretched as far as Harry could see. There was a spindly chair in the corner and an old man at the desk. Harry assumed that this was Ollivander.

And it was Ollivander, though Harry wasn't sure what to make of someone who could remember every wand he ever sold. Hearing about what wands his parents first bought was rather pleasing, though. No one had ever mentioned what his parents were like – unless one was supposed to count the lie that they were both drunkards by the time of their deaths.

Harry then had to go through the process of choosing his wand – or rather, the wand choosing him. Each one he tried to wave, Ollivander immediately took it from his hand. The spindly chair quickly piled up with the tried wands. At one point during this, Harry caught sight of Hagrid outside the window holding up two ice creams in his hand to show he couldn't come in, but silently wished the giant man would be in here with him.

Finally, Ollivander handed him a wand that he described as being made of holly and phoenix feather. And the moment that Harry's hand grasped the wand, something happened. He felt warmth. He felt a connection, like a handshake. He waved the wand and watched red sparks fly from the tip.

"Curious," Ollivander said. Harry jumped, forgetting about the old man, "Very curious…"

"Sorry," Harry asked nervously, his eyes darting towards the box floating in front of him, "But what's curious?"

"I remember every wand I sold here, Mister Potter," Ollivander began and Harry's shoulders sagged, "Every wand. The phoenix who's feather rests in your wand, gave another long ago. Just one. It is curious indeed that you should have this wand when it's brother…"

His eyes flickered towards Harry's forehead, which held a scar shaped like a lightning bolt.

He didn't continue and Harry was thankful for that. He was starting to not like the man that much. Harry paid Ollivander 7 Galleons and left the shop a little shaky. He accepted one of the ice-creams from Hagrid and licked it absentmindedly.

The first stop they made was at Madam Malkin's for robes, as the supply list had indicated. Madam Malkin's had several kinds of robes out on display in the window to any onlookers, promoting the latest fashion trends of the season. Ruby robes with a matching hat and pendant. Green robes patterned with leaves that swayed within the fabric, giving the impression of hiding under a tree's shade. Yellow robes twinkling in the sunlight with tiny stones like dew drops. Hagrid had to duck his head as they entered. Harry was thankful that Hagrid was with him in the shop, he would have felt nervous being by himself.

Madam Malkin was a squat, smiling woman dressed all in mauve.

"Hogwarts, dear?" she didn't let Harry answer, "Got the lot here – another young man being fitted up just now, in fact."

In the back of the shop, a boy with a round face was standing on a footstool while a second witch pinned his long black robes to the proper size.

As Madam Malkin slipped a long robe over Harry and began fitting it, the boy looked at him shyly.

"Hullo," he said, "Hogwarts too?"

"Yes," Harry said.

"My aunt's at Flourish and Blotts getting my books, and my uncle went to the Apothecary to get ingredients for Potions," the boy shuddered at the end, as though the thought of Potions was rather unpleasant. His voice lightened a little, "Then they said we could go to Sugarplum's Sweets Shop afterwards and let me pick what I want. They like to spoil me a little."

It seemed that the boy's aunt and uncle enjoyed spoiling him quite often, as Harry thought he looked a bit closer to Dudley's weight than Harry's. But the round-faced boy didn't remind him of Dudley at the least, he sounded too shy and polite to be mistaken for him. Dudley would scream for Mars Bars or any candy he could, but the round-faced boy looked as though he were too shy to ask to look inside.

"That's more than my aunt and uncle would do," Harry said, realizing a moment later that the boy had heard him.

"Are they too busy?" the boy asked.

"With their son," Harry was starting to wish the boy would drop the topic, it was making him uncomfortable. The boy seemed to pick on that and changed the conversation.

"What house do you think you'll be in?" the round-faced boy asked, "Gran tells me I ought to be in Gryffindor, but I think I'm a Hufflepuff."

Harry wasn't exactly sure what the boy meant by "houses", but the defeated tone told him that Hufflepuff didn't sound all that pleasant.

"Er…"

"But maybe it wouldn't be that bad," the boy said suddenly, having forgotten that Harry was standing right next to him, "They take in anyone and I hear the Head of House is nice."

"Are you with anyone?" the round-faced boy asked, looking rather worried for some reason, "My Gran doesn't think it's safe to let me shop on my own, that's why she insisted my aunt and uncle come along so we could finish faster."

"Why?" Harry asked, feeling rather stupid.

"The Daily Prophet reported that Sirius Black's escaped from Azkaban."

"Azkaban?"

"The wizard prison," the boy explained, "They say he killed thirteen people with a single curse!"

Harry thought that he heard the name when Hagrid and he were rowing to shore. Come to think of it, Hagrid had stopped reading the paper and grew a nice shade of purple that would have fitted Uncle Vernon. He then began to swear profusely until he realized that Harry was right in front of him and was quiet the entire time they were in the London Underground.

"I'm with Hagrid," Harry pointed to the front of the shop, where the large man was talking to an old woman with a vulture nestled on her large brimmed hat.

The boy's eyes widened, "I've heard of him, he's the gamekeeper at Hogwarts. Gran says he's a good man. But rather foolish, too."

"I think he's brilliant," Harry said with little heat.

"Why is he here with you? Where are your parents?"

"They're dead," Harry said.

"Oh, I'm sorry," the round-faced boy did sound terribly sorry, "My parents, well...my Gran takes care of me, but she's really strict. No one in my family actually thought I was magic enough until I got the letter. They tried all sorts of things to get me to do magic, I almost drowned once."

Harry found himself feeling sorry for the boy, with his strict Gran and family who thought drowning him was a great way of proving if he had magic or not. It made the Dursleys appear tame by comparison.

"My gran's waiting out front for me," the round-faced boy continued, "She doesn't trust me to be by myself, especially since Sirius Black's escaped."

He pointed to the old woman talking to Hagrid.

"What's your name, by the way?"

Before Harry could answer, Madam Malkin removed the robe from over his head, "That's you done, my dear," and Harry, sorry for an excuse to stop talking to the boy, stepped down from the stool. He gave the round-faced boy a friendly wave, which was earnestly returned.

"See you at Hogwarts," the boy said rather cheerfully, smiling for the first time since he greeted Harry.

The boy's grandmother spared Harry a quick look, before her eyes flitted towards his forehead. Harry matted down his hair on instinct, uncomfortable with more handshaking and being held up by people he wasn't familiar with. But, the old woman didn't say a word and let Harry and Hagrid leave.

"What's up?" said Hagrid.

"Nothing," Harry lied. He cheered up a little when they were buying parchment and quills, picking up a bottle of ink that changed color as you wrote. When they left, he said, "Hagrid, do some families have children that aren't born with magic?"

"Blimey Harry, I keep forgettin' how little yeh know."

Harry told him about the round-faced boy at Madam Malkin's, " – and he said his family thought he wasn't magic enough to get in and –"

"And yeh think yeh ain't magic enough? Yeh got yer letter, yeh know strange things have happened 'round yeh, yeh'll fit in with everyone else. Lots o' students come from Muggle families, Harry, yeh ain't tha' far behind."

Harry felt a little better hearing that, but he couldn't help but think about the round-faced boy's family, "But have there been people couldn't do magic at all in a wizard family?"

"They be called Squibs -non-magic people born in magic families – and they don't get much respect 'round her and join the Muggle world. Those who don't end up bitter an' hating wizards and witches fer being able to do magic while they can't."

Harry was reminded of how vindictive Aunt Petunia was when she ranted about his mother being a witch and their parents being proud. Perhaps her hatred of Harry was more of a jealousy stemming from her sister.

They stopped at the Apothecary for potion ingredients, bought a nice set of scales for measuring potion ingredients and a collapsible brass telescope, had a debate on what kind of cauldron to buy – "Says pewter on yer list" – and finished at Flourish and Blotts where Hagrid had to drag Harry away from an interesting book titled Curses and Countercourse.

"I wanted to learn how to curse Dudley," Harry said.

"Not against that idea, but that book's too advanced for yeh at the moment. And yeh can't use magic in the Muggle world except for very specific circumstances."

Harry's new wand suddenly felt useless at this proclamation.

"All set with supplies," Hagrid looked over the list one last time, "Oh, and I still need teh get yeh a birthday present," He waved off Harry's stammering and protests, "I know the Dursleys aren' gonna git yeh something. I'll buy yeh a pet. Not toads, they went out o' fashion ages ago and yeh'll be laughed at. Not cats, they make me sneeze. I'll get yeh an owl. Ruddy useful they are, can send letters and deliver mail fer yeh."

A short while later, they exited Eeylops Owl Emporium with a snowy white owl. Harry sounded like Professor Quirrel as he thanked Hagrid. As they headed back towards the Leaky Cauldron when a transparent box appeared in front of Harry.

**[Congratulations! You have obtained your WAND, obtained access to ITEMS and have officially taken your first step towards becoming a WIZARD.]**

What. Harry thought stupidly.

Harry peered at the transparent box in front of him. He waved his hand, looked to see if anyone else had noticed, even tried sticking his hand through the floating object. Nothing.

More words started to appear in neat handwriting that reminded Harry of his Hogwarts letter, though not all at once. It took several seconds – ten to fifteen as best – before a complete sentence was made. It reminded Harry of the text boxes in some of Dudley's computer games he played when the Dursleys were out.

**[As of this moment, you are clearly questioning your sanity. Before you react or scream, however, please hear me out. Or read me out, if you wish to be technical about it.]**

What. Harry thought again, his heart beginning to hammer against his chest.

**[New Quest Unlocked]**

What. Harry thought a third time.

**[Stop thinking 'what', please. Just read the text box]**

**[Swish and Flicker: You have just obtained your WAND, the key to channeling your SPELLS in the WIZARDING WORLD. There is so much to do before you return to PVT. DRIVE. You should ask Hagrid to at least let you practice casting a spell or two before the day is up.]**

**[Quest Rewards: New Spell Unlocked, 15 XP, 70 Relationship with RUBEUS HAGRID.]**

**[Quest Failure: 30 Relationship with RUBEUS HAGRID]**

Harry looked over at Hagrid, who was looking over Harry's supplies and then back to the transparent box. There was a smaller box underneath with two words highlighted. Yes/No. Harry slowly moved his hand over to the Yes, blinking in amazement when all the words suddenly vanished, leaving the Yes by itself.

"Hagrid," Harry tried to keep his voice level, "I was wondering if I could practice using my wand before we go. I wanted to try some magic like you did."

Hagrid looked over at Harry with Hedwig's cage in hand, pensive for a moment before nodding, "Alrigh', then. Just fer a few minutes, then we get back yeh on teh train home. Follow me."

Harry trailed behind Hagrid down an empty alleyway, much like the one outside the Leaky Cauldron. There were a few empty trashcans as well as several empty bottles on top of them. One trash can was rustling a little, like something was trying to get out. Hagrid placed the supplies and cage down near the alley.

"Now," Hagrid started, "Since yer a first year, yer not gonna do much until you get a couple o' years o' schooling in. But –"

He pulled out his umbrella and gripped it tightly.

"There's still stuff you can do."

Harry's eyes lit up with excitement, looking at Hagrid's umbrella earnestly and hoping to see more magic being performed by the big man. Hagrid caught Harry's eye and quickly moved his umbrella out of Harry's line of sight.

"Can' do no more magic, I'm 'fraid," Hagrid shook his head, "Don' want ter get into trouble in a public area."

"But what about the spells?" Harry asked earnestly.

"Well," Hagrid pointed at one of the trashcans, "Nothing against you doin' magic here. Jus' not in front of ta' Muggles. Here, yeh get a pass cause yer with me and kids practice here sometimes. Now, get yer wand out an' point it at that bin over there."

Harry pulled his wand from his pocket and did what Hagrid instructed, pointing it at one of the empty bins.

"Now, the firs' spell I'm gonna teach you is a simple jinx called Flipendo. Good fer people like yer cousin. Yeh twirl yer wand in the air fer a few seconds, then do this saying Flipendo!"

Hagrid demonstrated with his arm, bringing it down with a mighty swing. Unfortunately, he was still holding his umbrella in his hand and a purplish jet of light shot out of the tip with a loud bang and hit the rustling trash bin. The bin went down and a small creature, about six inches tall, tumbled out. It had pointed ears, grey skin that reminded Harry of the uniform Aunt Petunia tried making for Stonewall High and was wearing a small rag around its waist.

It looked up at Harry and Hagrid and started chattering angrily before charging at them. The snowy white owl chirped angrily at it.

"Harry, use the spell!" Hagrid cried out.

Harry jumped and quickly twirled his wand in the air, feeling a little ridiculous. He could feel the wand grow warm in his hand and a blue glow appeared around the tip. When the small creature got close enough, it jumped in the air with its sharp teeth bared.

Harry swung his wand at the creature and cried out, "Flipendo!"

A jet of blue light shot out of the wand with a loud bang and struck the creature square-chest. It flew back five feet and landed on the ground with a thud. It slowly got to its feet, looked at Harry with a hateful expression and scampered away through a tight corner in the wall at the end.

Hagrid clapped loudly, "Bravo, Harry! Bravo! Yer dad loved ta' use tha' spell when he was yer age!"

Harry looked at his wand in amazement. This was his first time casting a spell. Harry felt empowered and suddenly wished he could use that on Dudley and his friends if they ever tried another game of Harry Hunting on him ever again.

"Hagrid, what was that thing?" he asked, looking over to where the creature scampered off.

"Imp," Hagrid said simply, "Nasty little buggers, they are. Love ter' cause mischief. Sometimes, they steal Wizard Crackers an' throw em at people when they aren' looking. Best ta be careful 'round 'em"

He looked at Harry with a nervous expression, "Ya' wouldn' mind not mentioning I did that at Hogwarts, would yeh?"

"No," Harry shook his head, unsure of what a Wizard Cracker was and how an imp could use it on other people.

"Good," Hagrid sagged, looking relieved, "Now, why don' yer practice again on those bins. Just do what yer did ta' tha' imp."

Harry raised his wand in the air and twirled it, seeing the blue glow again. He felt wind swirling around him this time, like a tornado was building inside of him. As the light above him turned pink, Hagrid suddenly looked alarmed.

"Harry, don' –"

Harry suddenly felt the air leave his chest and landed eagled spread on the ground. Hagrid quickly helped him up, looking over him nervously.

"Are yer alrigh'?" He asked Harry.

"Fine," Harry massaged his chest, surprised as he felt no bruises. He poked at the spot where the spell felt like it hit gingerly. Aside from the spell backfiring in that instance, Harry didn't feel like he was in pain.

"Tha's what happens when yer do tha' fer too long," Hagrid explained, "Happens a lo' fer firs' years', but don' hurt them much."

For each question that got answered, ten more came to mind. There was no Uncle Vernon or Aunt Petunia getting mad about it, either, or telling him off for it. Harry couldn't contain himself as he asked Hagrid if other spells had similar reactions.

"Not that I know of," Hagrid admitted, "Some spells need a little charging before yer fire, I guess. Try again on that bin, but don' charge fer too long or else…you know…"

Harry took a stance and twirled his wand in the air again, swinging it down the moment the blue glow appeared again.

"Flipendo!" He cried out.

He watched as the blue jet flew out the tip of his wand with a loud bang and hit one of the empty trash bins, feeling disappointed when it only rattled.

"The longer yer charge it, the stronger it gets," Hagrid explained, "Just don' overcharge it an' ye'll be fine."

Harry repeated the action, this time casting the jinx when the light was the same color as Hagrid's was. This time, the empty trash bin went down when it was struck. He smiled with satisfaction and tried the spell on one of the bottles on top of the remaining bins.

A blue jet of light hit a bottle, shattering it upon contact. The shards fell like rain onto the pavement.

Hagrid clapped loudly again, "Bravo! I'll teach yeh one more spell, alright? Then we get back teh gettin' yer school supplies."

Harry lowered his wand and awaited further instructions.

"Now, this next spell's mighty useful fer sendin' signals or fer fighting, so pay attention. The incantation is Vermillious, and the wand movement is, er…"

Hagrid suddenly remembered he was still holding his umbrella and put it down. He looked back at Harry and continued,

"Tryin' teh remember…ah! Yeh make this curve with yer wand goin' right…yeh got it, Harry! Practice teh movement a few times, just so yeh remember an'…good. Now say the incantation."

"Vermillious," Harry said, keeping his voice firm.

"Good," Hagrid nodded and pointed back to the bins, "Let's see what yeh can do, now."

Harry pointed his wand at one of the bins, made the wand movement Hagrid showed him, and cried out,

"Vermillious!"

Red sparks flew out of his wand and hit one of the fallen bins. To Harry's surprise, however, the bin barely moved.

Hagrid scratched his beard thoughtfully for a moment.

"Oh, now I remember. That spell don' work well on metal stuff. But it might be helpful against tha' imp if we see it again. Or, er…somethin' else. Good effort, Harry. Time teh go."

A new box appeared in front of Harry as Hagrid wandered out of the alley.

**[Quest Complete!]**

**[Rewards: SPELLS Unlocked. Can now cast FLIPENDO and VERMILLIOUS UNO. 15 XP Earned. 70 Relationship with RUBEUS HAGRID.]**

What is XP? Harry thought. He didn't recognize that phrase from any of the games that Dudley had.

**[XP or Experience, is gained by completing tasks, defeating enemies or unlocking rewards. When you gain enough XP, you LEVEL UP and become stronger. STATS and HEALTH increase and new abilities or spells become available as you level up.]**

**[For more information, finish your shopping and summon THE GUIDE in private. This can be accomplished by equipping your WAND and saying INFO. Be wary of where you say it, however, as it may lead to unwanted attention, a decrease in your REP, and the unwanted title of Mutterer. Not to be confused with Murderer, which, of course, is another story altogether.]**

Just as quickly as it appeared, the boxes vanished once more. Hagrid didn't seem to notice and began trudging out of the alleyway, gesturing for Harry to follow him. Harry wasn't exactly sure what REP. was or why it was important, but he was hopeful that his questions would be answered later.

**(0-0)**

**Author's Note**: Want to know the funny part? I had to look for RPG games that were made around the time period of Sorcerer's Stone (in the 1990s) and narrow it down to games that I was certain that Vernon or Petunia would both letting Dudley get. Not because of the rating system, mind you.

More because the games were fantasy based and we all know how those assholes feel about anything fantastical…like dreaming about flying motorcycles for example. Way to handle an innocent comment like that, Vernon. Way to be a great role model for your son and his friend, by shouting to a ten-year-old that motorcycles don't fly. Thanks for pointing out the obvious and ruining what was probably a half-decent dream for the poor kid with your anger issues.

And then realized I wasn't going to get anything with XP involved and had to have Harry learn about it instead. Well, at least I won't be copying SeerKing, thankfully.

Dammit, I had a hard time with writing that scene with Neville. Wanted to shake up canon pretty early. I did have a lot of fun with writing about Diagon Alley, though. I tried to make it sound plausible in canon and even used some shop names from the wiki. Neville was referring to one shop that was never stated in the books.

I admit to having to use several lines of words directly from the book – I'm so sorry JK Rowling, please don't sue me – when in the Madam Malkin's scene and peppered throughout the shopping montage. Didn't like using it and still don't now.

Thanks for reading and please review! And be sure to check out Naruto: The Game of Life by SeerKing if you are a fan of Gamer fics!

Also like to apologize for the slow build here. Next chapter speeds things up and shows more of the Gamer aspects, I promise. More action and less boring stuff next time!

Happy birthday, Harry Potter!

**Edit: **I had to remove some text I left out in the Ollivander scene. I meant for the Gamer to appear earlier on, but I couldn't figure out how to incorporate it into the story. And I just realized how weird it looked out of place like that. Sorry...


End file.
